Some people cannot walk past someone who needs help. These real-life kindness stories about human connection & everyday acts of compassion prove that the world is warmer than we sometimes remember. By the end of this article you may feel a sudden urge to do something good for someone.
Morning was a complete disaster. I overslept and spilled coffee all over myself and the car would not start. Then I noticed someone had stuck a piece of paper on my windshield. I thought someone was going to get an earful from me. I read it and instead of the usual complaint it said you look very beautiful today & to smile. And I did smile.
In the spring a woman approached me with a little girl while my friend & I were listening to a street musician and singing along. She said her daughter wanted to tell me something but she was shy. The girl whispered that I was very beautiful. I have never been so happy & surprised at the same time in my life. A child felt a genuine urge to tell a stranger that she was beautiful and her mom encouraged her.
A dog wandered into the courtyard of my coworker’s apartment building. They let it into the entranceway and gave it food but no one took it home. I suggested taking a picture and posting it online. She did just that. A woman from another city responded. She lives in a house but could not come to get the dog. Two kind women agreed to drive the dog to another city in their car. It was at least a two hour drive one way. So many compassionate people got involved in the fate of this puppy.
Our neighbor is kind enough to let the dogs out when my husband and I are working long hours.
A long line formed in the store. An elderly man asked to cut in front of me with just one box of chocolates. He was in a hurry to see his first grade grandson. I let him go. At the register he started picking up chocolate eggs & kept glancing back at the line. Once he paid he handed them out to me and everyone else in the line while thanking us for our kindness & understanding.
I made a deal with my son that if he gets good grades in three exams I would buy him the latest iPhone. My son kept his part of the bargain & the next day I brought him the phone. But he asked to return it and buy two simpler ones instead. He kept one for himself & gave the other to a friend with whom he has been sharing a desk since fifth grade. It turns out the girl is being raised by her grandmother & they are struggling financially. She has been using a broken phone for a year now. Also the class is going on a camping trip for a few days so my son asked to use the remaining money to cover the girl’s expenses. He said he wanted to do something nice for her and leave her with a good memory of him since she always had his back. He is moving to another city soon to study. I cannot say I was very surprised but it really touched me.
I was giving away puppies from my parents’ dog through an ad. An elderly woman called and asked if they could take one. She said her husband and she wanted to see the mother dog to make sure it was not a small breed. I gave them my parents’ address and warned them to wait for me as the dog is large and my elderly parents might not be able to restrain her. A couple of hours later a call came in. The woman shouted into the phone out of breath that her husband and she were running to the bus stop with the puppy. They saw the dog and were afraid she would catch them. They did not even know they could still run that fast. They called again later while laughing and said they ran all the way to the bus stop. They said the puppy was adorable & thanked us profusely.
I leave kind letters & gifts for strangers around my town. Inside each one is a good wish and a small gift.
My son and I were traveling home for the holidays on a long trip that included a flight and a bus ride that could stretch from 3 to 12 hours because of the border crossing and then another flight. It was our first time taking this route. At the border checkpoint we were told to get off the bus & only take our documents. We ended up standing there for a long time during an unusually hot summer day. My son was very thirsty & a kind woman from our bus gave him a bottle of water. Later I tried to keep the cycle of kindness going by offering my phone to fellow passengers so they could call family members picking them up. On the way back I stocked up on water & gave a couple of bottles to others. The lesson is to do good and expect nothing in return.
In the late 80s during winter my mom met a woman on a plane who was going on a business trip. The plane arrived at night and this businesswoman hadn’t even booked a hotel. Mom offered her to spend the night at our place even though we lived in a one bedroom apartment. There were no rooms available in hotels so that lady stayed with us for the entire period. We became very close friends. Later we flew to visit her and her daughter & husband visited us. They turned out to be wonderful people.
Once I was flying from abroad and intended to sleep at the airport to wait for the connecting flight. I met a young woman and her teenage son. We started talking and she convinced me to go to their place. Her husband’s brother met them and he wasn’t surprised to see a stranger with them. As it turned out one woman had also helped him with lodging in a foreign country once. Many years have passed yet I still remember that woman with gratitude and sometimes we even exchange messages on social media.
My mom creates “kindness rocks” and leaves them hidden around her town to brighten people’s day. Here are some of her latest creations.
My son was little at the time and about 4 years old. Money was tight. We were walking back from the store during winter with slush everywhere. I had heavy bags and my son had a cream filled wafer cone he had begged for in one hand & a balloon in the other. Then he slipped and balanced for a while before falling into the dirt. I couldn’t help because my hands were full. The cone was smashed and the balloon was gone. Suddenly a man jumped up to us. He must have been sitting in a car watching. He said it happens and not to worry because Santa Claus asked him to give my son an egg and not just any egg but a chocolate one. He gave my boy a giant chocolate egg that was huge & the size of an adult’s head. My son’s tears dried instantly. We were really taken aback but we managed to mumble thank you.
A friend was at the vet with her cat. In front of her in line was a woman around 60 years old with a male cat. When it was her turn to pay it turned out she didn’t have enough money. The vet clinic was understanding and asked her to write a statement promising to pay by a certain date. The woman wrote it and left. My friend decided to pay her bill. It was just a spontaneous heartfelt urge. She deliberately didn’t leave her phone number and emphasized that no repayment was necessary. More than a year went by. Suddenly my friend received money on her card with the note saying thank you for your help. We all teared up.
My husband was buying bread at the local grocery store in the evening when a mom & her child walked in. There was a huge plastic truck on the shelf. The son started asking his mom to buy this truck. It was really enormous and about 3 feet long. The mom quietly explained that she couldn’t afford this purchase and the child understood and didn’t ask anymore. While they were choosing vegetables my husband asked the saleswoman if she knew them. It turned out that this mom was raising the child alone and they lived very modestly but she didn’t ask anyone for help. In the end my husband bought this huge monster along with a loaf of bread & handed it to the boy. The mom started to refuse but my husband said that kindness should be returned. When he was a child a man also bought him a toy that his mother couldn’t afford.
I decided to go dancing with a group of people I didn’t really know. They mostly talked among themselves. I was enjoying the music alone and enviously watching how well long-time friends were having fun. I sat down to catch my breath after dancing. Then a girl came over & said something like “Let’s dance come on.” And I jumped up! It seemed like just a few simple words but they lifted me up off the ground.
My sister left her car window down on a rainy day and someone did this.
I finished work on December 30th & headed to the metro station in the evening from which a shuttle bus runs to my village every hour. I approached the stop and there was a crowd because apparently the previous shuttle didn’t show up. The one due now was absent too. It was 13°F outside with a snowstorm. Then the last bus arrived which stops 4 miles from my house. I took a chance and got on it. I was holding 2 heavy bags of groceries for the New Year’s party. Half an hour later I got off onto an icy road and trudged toward home. I thought I’d catch a ride but no one stopped. After a couple of miles I realized I was freezing. Then a car came from the side road and sped toward the city. I was still walking along the dark forest road cursing myself for not going back to work where I could’ve spent the night even if just on chairs but at least in the warm place. Suddenly headlights appeared far behind me. As they got closer I barely had enough power to raise my hand. The car stopped. When I opened the door I saw the guilty face of a young man who had sped off to the city 20 minutes earlier. He drove me straight to my house all the while apologizing for not realizing immediately. He was already halfway to the city but the thought of a lone person in the cold and snowstorm on the road on New Year’s Eve nagged him until he turned around and rushed back. It warmed my heart to know that the current generation still possesses wonderful qualities such as compassion & conscience and kindness.
They were scanning my groceries at the checkout. I was standing there counting my money just hoping it would be enough. Then a guy behind me sneaked some caviar and cheese and something else into my basket and said “We’re together!” I was so flustered I couldn’t say a word. As soon as the cashier announced the total he quickly tapped his card on the terminal. He took his items and told me not to worry about paying him back. That gift was incredibly timely.
We have a lonely elderly lady living in our building. I once asked her if her pension was enough. She said “I don’t know how to top up my phone balance but it never runs out.” Moreover she mentioned that a guy from social services comes once a week with a bag of groceries and vegetables. My husband has known her since childhood because she used to treat them with sweets and pastries. In short I’ve been living with “social services” for 3 years now. I didn’t know anything about it. I’m proud of my husband!
I was driving home. A car with some guys was barely crawling in front of me. They had flat tires so I offered them help. I gave them a pump & a jack and I flat-out refused to accept any money as thanks. They loaded the tools into my trunk and we went our separate ways. But once I got home I found a box of marshmallows in my trunk with a $50 note tucked inside. Those rascals!
The world doesn’t run on grand gestures. It runs on the person who turns their car around in a blizzard or slips marshmallows into your trunk or quietly shows up for someone year after year without saying a word.
